SPIRITUAL DEVELOPMENT
With a hope to see all VACU students thrive, grow, and enjoy their time with the university. In order to accomplish this, we provide a variety of venues to help students develop strong relationships and reach out to others. In addition to the opportunities presented below, students can connect through various student organizations.
Community Guidelines
Students at VACUs have joined a community where they can learn, live, and lead according to God’s calling. Classroom life is only a part of the educational experience. Learning in community with one another includes the academic and personal development of each student.
Activities
Student activities help build community among students. Various activities are scheduled regularly throughout each semester including concerts, coffeehouses, movie nights, trips to Washington D.C., picnics, tournaments and various other events. These events are designed to connect you with your fellow students and others, providing you with many fond memories.
Local Church
While students are at VACU, they are receiving a wealth of information. However, it is important for students to not only learn this information but to put it into practice. Recognizing the limitations of a primarily academic setting, faculty and staff seek to instill within the student a deep love for God and His Word, a heart for evangelism and missions, and the integration of biblical teaching and values into every aspect of life. Choosing of a church is left to the student’s discretion. Students are required to be involved in a body of Christ outside of VACU in an effort to put into practice what they are being taught and to prepare for the future ministry.
In order to ensure that each student is participating/serving in a local church:
- Students must register for Field Education, and thereby document their own participation and/or involvement in ministry to the body of Christ,
- If students are not registered for a Field Education credit, each student must indicate their intention of regularly participating in a local body of Christ over the course of a semester.
Chapel
The purpose of chapel is to provide a meeting centered on the Bible, focus on current issues, and to unite passion with scholarly mindset. Students are required to attend chapel if they have class before, during, or after chapel. Chapel at the extension sites is held on dates determined by the instructor.
Small Groups on Campus
Small Groups are designed to help the students. They meet throughout the semester and are held by professors, student leaders, and invited guests. These small groups deal with theological and biblical topics and offer opportunities to worship God through songs, prayers, and Scripture readings. Groups meet at designated times to pray for certain topics or for one another. The Prayer Meeting Room on campus provides students with a quiet atmosphere to focus on prayer at any time throughout the day.
Mentoring
At VACU, our vision for mentoring is to glorify God by sharing our lives together. Your mentor comes alongside you in order to help you transition successfully into VACU.This includes a joint partnership aimed at successful navigation of the higher education community and spiritual growth. The mentors are VACU upperclassmen, VACU students, and alumni of the institution; they all have demonstrated Christian character and academic success. Their experiences have equipped them to assist newer students.
A mentor walks alongside another student, helping in his or her development as a student and as a disciple of Christ. The mentor/mentee relationship is not a counseling or academic advising relationship. Rather, the mentor welcomes opportunities to help you reach your God-given potential through various means, including support, challenge, and encouragement.
We love you so much that we were delighted to share with you not only the gospel of God but our lives as well, because you had become so dear to us.(1 Thessalonians 2:8)